My Love, My Enemy
by lizzynature
Summary: Adelina didn't want to marry Victor, but she didn't have a choice. She couldn't put her own feelings first, even when it came to her getting married. As she moves into Victor's home, secrets start to be unraveled and one question gets stuck in her mind: who can she trust? Her life has changed and there is no going back... But will it be for better or for worse?
1. Chapter 1

Hey! So I'm new here and this isn't the first fanfiction I've written, but it's the first one I've published. I hope you like it, it's a totally different setting to the one in the Finding Sky books but I wanted to do something different to it, whilst still keeping the characters we all love. I don't know if it's any good, I think this chapter may not be very exciting so not the perfect opener? I don't know. Reviews will be highly appreciated so I know whether I should continue with this or not.

-Lizzy

* * *

 _Chapter one_

I had never felt more like I was a possession, something to give away, than I had at that exact moment.

I was twenty-two years old and it was my wedding day. I had dreamed of this day, of it being like a wedding from the dusty old fairy-tale books I had learned to read from as a child. It should have been the happiest day of my life. I should have been in love with the man I was engaged to.

I wasn't a civilian though. I was a princess which meant I had a duty to my kingdom to do what was best for them. This wedding wasn't necessarily the best thing for me, but it was for the kingdom, so I couldn't say no. Well, I hadn't had a choice, but if I had I think mother would have persuaded me to make the right decision eventually.

I looked at myself in the full-length mirror. My hair had been braided and fell loosely down my back, with red flowers woven in throughout. My face looked fresh, with just a little bit of blush on my dark skin and some rouge on my lips. The maids had done well, with the assistance of my ladies-in-waiting.

The seamstress had done well too. My gown was white as per tradition, with lace sleeves to my elbow and lace covering my chest and the bottom half of my neck. It was floor-length too, meaning that almost all my skin was covered. Still, it hugged my curves tightly before spinning into a full skirt just below my knees. It was beautiful and suited me perfectly; I wished I could enjoy it, but the truth was I couldn't enjoy anything about today.

I wondered what my future husband would think when he saw me walking down the aisle toward him. It would be the first time we had ever met and I wondered if he'd deem me suitable for him. If he dared to say I wasn't, I would give him hell for it. I didn't want his approval anyway, I was only marrying him for the alliance.

The three kingdoms – Adwyndra, Zilathien, and Priewen – had been at war with each other for many centuries. The history textbooks talked of a betrayal long ago, but that was as specific as it got. The details didn't even really matter. What mattered was that it was getting out of hand and far too many innocents were dying.

Something had to be done.

The Priewenese were the most vicious of the bunch, so mother wrote to the queen of Adwyndra and asked for an alliance, to join their forces and protect both kingdoms from the Priewenese. The queen of Adwyndra agreed to the alliance on one condition: that I, the only princess of Zilathien, marry one of her seven sons.

I'd never met any of the seven princes of Adwyndra but I had heard of their reputations: two were apparently kind, gentle, and respectful; four were meant to be arrogant and womanizers; and one was the Beast. The Beast was the third son, and according to the rumours he had been given the nickname due to severe facial scarring. Word had spread that he was terrifying.

Unfortunately for me, I was to marry the Beast.

Clarissa, one of my ladies-in-waiting, stepped forward and smiled at my reflection in the looking glass. "Well, Adelina? What do you think?"

I took a deep breath, thankful that she wasn't bothering with formalities on a difficult day such as today. "I think it is lovely," I answered, smoothing my sweating palms down the sides of the gown. It was made of a thin material yet I still felt like I was overheating. "Please pass on my thanks to the seamstress." I turned to face the three maids in the room, who all bowed their heads to me immediately. "Thank you for helping to prepare me for this day. You may leave."

As soon as the three young women left, I looked over at Clarissa and Bethan. The twins, identical in their plain beauty, had been my ladies-in-waiting since I was sixteen years old, but I had known them much longer. Their mother was a lady-in-waiting to my mother, and had often brought the girls to work with her. They were the same age as me and we'd grown up playing together. They were my best friends.

I felt tears spring to my eyes and tried to hold them back, not allowing them to fall and ruin the carefully applied make-up. "I don't want to do this," I told them. It was something they'd been hearing for the past three months, since the marriage was first agreed upon. "I don't want to wed someone that I do not love. I do not want to move to an unfamiliar land. Why couldn't the queen of Adwyndra at least have chosen another of her sons for me to marry? Why did it have to be the Beast? Even the sound of him scares me."

"She probably chose him because she knows this will be the only chance he has to get married," Bethan answered bluntly, never one to hold her tongue. "I mean, from what I've heard about him, no one is going to _choose_ to marry him."

Clarissa shot her sister a glance that said she clearly wasn't helping. "Lina." She gave me a soft smile as she readjusted the silver tiara that glittered with diamonds on the top of my head. "Just think of all the people this could save. Think of the fact that you will finally be out of your mother's reach so she can no longer control you. Think of the land you can explore. Bethan and I are coming with you. You won't be alone in this and we won't let anything bad ever happen to you, okay? Now stop scowling, put a smile on your face, and hold your head high. You are strong and you can get through anything."

I did as she told me to. I had to admit that she'd made me feel a little bit better and brought my confidence back. I had never shown a weakness to my people – as their future queen, I both wanted and needed their respect and admiration, which I had achieved over the years. I wouldn't let them think I wasn't strong enough to lead them and do what was necessary.

I would marry the third price of Adwyndra. I had made that promise and I would keep it, however that didn't mean I had to be the perfect princess bride to him. I didn't need to like him, I didn't need him to like me: I just needed the title of being his wife for this to work.

* * *

My confidence quickly wavered when I was stood outside the great hall and could hear the chatter of the crowd inside. Royal weddings would usually have hundreds in attendance, but Her Majesty Karla of Adwyndra had asked for a closed ceremony. Only the most important people from both kingdoms were in attendance inside the great hall, about a hundred in total, and honestly I was glad that there were less people there to gawp at me.

I'd looked out of a window on the way up to the hall and had seen thousands of people gathered outside the palace. People from both kingdoms had travelled to my home in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the newly wedded couple as we left. It had unsurprisingly been made into such a big event, which just made me more nervous.

I heard the chatter cease inside the great hall and as the huge oak double doors were opened before me, the organ players started playing the traditional wedding march. Violins joined in a moment later, creating a new melody that weaved perfectly with the old one, and my mother pressed up against me and linked her arm through mine.

In all three kingdoms, it were the women who were revered and worshipped the most, because of the fact all of our gods were goddesses. It was the queens who ruled the kingdoms, with their kings there just as their partner. A king could not sit on his throne without a queen beside his side. Because of this, my mother was the one to walk me down the aisle rather than my father.

"Get rid of that frown," mother hissed into my ear, tightening her grip on my arm. "If you can't force a smile onto your face, at least make yourself look neutral about this. We don't need the Adwyndrans to believe that you're miserable and don't want to join their royal family. _Adelina."_ When she snapped my name, I stopped frowning.

My mother truly did scare me and I reminded myself, just like Clarissa had said, that at least this was my way of getting away from her at last.

We started to walk forward down the aisle, guests from my kingdom to my left and the others to my right. The great hall had been transformed, lit candles held in mid-air over the guests' heads – clearly the wedding planner had hired a savant with strong telekinetic powers. Red and white flowers adorned the guests' chairs and the two huge thrones at the head of the room, ribbons hung from everything, and the musicians sat high in the balcony dressed all in white for the occasion.

Walking down the aisle, I looked everywhere but ahead of me. I saw members of my mother's council, my aunt Sonya glaring at me as per usual, Duke Edmond's glum face (he had been in hopes that I would one day marry his son, an ugly, prematurely balding young man), and on the front row stood my father and my brother. My brother Charles looked angry at the situation, knowing this isn't what I wanted, whilst my father had tears in his eyes as he smiled at me.

Next I looked to the front row on my right side. I saw the royal family of Adwyndra. The family resemblance was striking, with their light brown skin and dark hair. The six princes stood there were all tall and handsome, looking at me with irate faces as if this whole thing was my idea. If they wanted to blame anyone, they should blame their own mother.

Finally, when I had nowhere else to look, I turned my head straight forward to inspect the man waiting at the end of the aisle for me. Like his brothers, he was tall. His body was broad and his dark hair, grown slightly past his shoulders, was pulled back into a neat, low ponytail. When he turned to look at me, I almost gasped in shock. I had been imagining what his ruined face would like, but I couldn't even tell. A black mask covered his entire face, made of a material that seemed to mould onto his face and defined his strong jawline. As I got closer, I noticed that only his left eye had a hole to look through, his right eye completely covered by the mask just like his face. Why was that? The one eye I could see was a striking, bright blue and had long eyelashes.

He met my eyes and I had no way to discern what he was thinking.

Everything after that sort of fell into a blur in my mind. My mother placed my left hand in the prince's, and I couldn't help thinking that his skin was abnormally ice cold. The officiator did a speech, talking about the duties of a husband and wife and how we were now under the care of the Love Goddess. I highly doubted that. Vows started to be exchanged and one quote of the officiator's stood out to me.

"And do you, Her Royal Highness Adelina Genevieve Rosemary of the family Ash of the kingdom Zilathien and heir to the Zilathien throne, take thee, His Royal Highness Victor Matthias Alexander of the family Benedict of the kingdom Adwyndra, to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, in the names of all your goddesses, 'til death do you part?"

I stopped breathing for a second, looking up at the masked face. The thought of spending every single day of the rest of my life with this stranger haunted me. But I had no choice. As my mother had reminded me countless times recently: the kingdom came before my happiness.

So I did my duty. My hand trembled in the prince's as I said, "I do."

Rings were exchanged and a final statement declaring us husband and wife was made. For obvious reasons, we couldn't seal the vows with a kiss as per tradition. Instead, Prince Victor – my husband – went down on one knee onto the floor. He held my hand so gently, like he thought I was delicate and might break if he held any tighter, and pressed his forehead to the back of my hand. His mask was smooth and as cold as his hand. This position was a gesture of total respect and admiration, and I was too surprised by the action to say anything.

He stayed there for a moment before rising back to his feet, still holding my hand.

I didn't know what to think of Prince Victor. His size, the way he held himself, and his reputation intimidated me. I was in fear of him, which was made worse because of the fact I couldn't his face or expression. His deep, gravelly voice hadn't given anything away either. What did he think of this arranged marriage? What did he think of me? Did he wish he'd had the chance to choose his own bride, or did he think this was his only shot at marriage like Bethan had said?

I turned forward again, my gaze dropping to the floor just like I had been told to do in rehearsals for this day. Prince Victor let go of my hand and I knew it was because his mother was handing him something.

He stepped up behind me and I felt the weight of the cloak as he draped it over my shoulders. The cloak was made of a thick, soft and luxurious material. It was a deep red colour and I knew that the crest of Adwyndra – a swirling design of stars encircling a crescent moon – was on the back of the cloak. I turned around and lifted my head as Prince Victor tied the cloak at my neck, not too tight and not too loose.

He moved to stand beside me and took my hand yet again as we faced our guests together. Applause rang out and it took everything in me to keep holding Prince Victor's hand and to keep my expression steady as I stood straight and rigid. It took everything in me not to run away at that exact moment.

Well, there it was. It had happened.

I was married.

There was no going back now.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for the reviews, I wasn't expecting any to be honest haha.

I'm a little worried that you might find these first few chapters to be boring, but I promise if you just bear with me and let me get the setting down then things will get more exciting!

-Lizzy

* * *

 _Chapter two_

"Don't let them destroy you," Charles whispered into my ear. We were stood in the courtyard in front of the palace, saying our final goodbyes before I travelled to my new home. The royal family of Adwyndra, as well as a few members of their court, were already sat in their carriages or upon their horses, awaiting on me.

Charles pulled away, his dark eyes boring into mine. Charles was only a year older than me which had led to us growing up together, close enough to be twins. He was my best friend and it hurt me so much to leave him. "I'll miss you," I told him. "I'll write though. I'll tell you everything."

"Ensure that you do," he replied, a frown on his face. He had protested against this marriage even more than I had. "If they mistreat you, if that _monster_ mistreats you, just say the word and I will come and get you. I don't care what it will do to the alliance."

I gave him a smile, feigning confidence in the situation in an attempt to make Charles feel a little better. We hugged once more before I turned to my father, a balding man with wrinkles at the corners of his eyes. Whilst I had a highly dysfunctional relationship with my mother, I didn't with him. Father was a softie, maybe a little bit of a pushover when it came to my mother telling him what to do, but he always treated me like his little girl no matter how old I became.

It broke my heart saying goodbye to him, knowing my chances of ever seeing him again were slim.

I didn't even look at my mother as I accepted a guard's hand to climb the steps to my carriage. Bethan and Clarissa were in a carriage towards the end of the procession, however I would be in the second from the front. The king and queen of Adwyndra were in the first carriage.

All the Adywndran carriages were identical. They were black, with the kingdom's deep red colour, and the kingdom's crest upon them. The horses pulling the carriages were beautiful and magnificent, as one would expect royals to have, and were draped in red fabric.

Only two carriages stood out: the first one that held the king and queen was larger than the others, and the second carriage – my carriage – was decorated with white ribbons as per tradition for a newly wedded couple.

As I settled myself on a seat in the carriage the door was shut. I looked across from me, where Prince Victor sat. He was staring at the windows, covered by the closed red curtains. The carriage was lovely inside, the seat plush and cushioned. Despite this, I hated being in here simply because it was such close proximity to the prince and there was nowhere to run.

There'd been no party celebrations for us after the wedding – which I was glad for – due to the fact we had such a journey ahead of us.

It took a while to get out of the city because of the crowds of civilians lining the roads. As they shouted and cheered as we went past them, I longed to open the curtains and take one last look at my city and its people. I would return one day, when it was my time to take over the throne, but that day could be years from now. Leaving all of this behind was bittersweet. The only reason I didn't open the curtains was that Prince Victor was tense across from me and I remembered being told that it was rare for even his own kingdom to see him in person these days.

Clearly he didn't want people to see him, so I didn't want to wind him up so early in the marriage. There was still time for that, I supposed.

It wasn't until we were out of the city and the world outside was quiet that I started a conversation with Prince Victor, the first one we'd ever had other than our wedding vows.

"So, how long will it take to get to your home? Geography has never been my strong point," I told him, looking right at him. I wouldn't let him think that I was scared of him, even if the thought of what was under that mask made my stomach turn. In this world, my title was more important than his so why should I act inferior to him?

The one eye of his that I could see looked wary as he returned my stare. "It'll take two days of riding, then three days at sea. Then another half day of riding, and we'll be there."

I nodded my head to acknowledge that I understood, not willing to voice the fact that I dreaded being on a ship. I had never travelled by sea before. Would it be as horrific as some sailors made it out to be?

Prince Victor didn't elaborate or continue the conversation which irked me a fair bit. I wasn't thrilled about this marriage but I at least wanted to make an effort for it to not be so awkward between us. I didn't care if we liked each other, I just wanted us to be able to hold a civil conversation. Did he want us to just spend the rest of our life in silence?

I asked him something that had been on my mind almost since the first moment I saw him. "How do you breathe with that thing on? And speak clearly?" I didn't ask why he wore the mask, the answer for that was obvious: he wanted to hide his disfigured face. But I was curious about the answers to my questions considering I couldn't see any holes in the black mask apart from the one eyehole.

It took the prince a second to answer, giving me the feeling he didn't want to talk about the mask and what it hid. "My aunt's savant power is to work with materials. She can weave magic into them so they are perfect for the wearer. This mask was made by her; her magic enables me to breathe and talk clearly when I am wearing it."

"That makes sense," I commented, watching him carefully. Why couldn't he just show me, in some way, what was running through his mind? "Lucky that you had an aunt with that power. What would you have done if not?"

Prince Victor shifted in his seat awkwardly before asking, "Does anybody in your family have a power you like to take advantage of?"

I didn't miss the fact that he diverted the attention away from himself, but I would rather talk during this journey than sit in an uncomfortable silence, so I allowed him this. "I wouldn't say so, no," I replied, folding my fingers over one another in my lap. "I make good use of my own power, if that counts. Although I have to hide it. I can work with nature, helping plants to grow and recover. Mother isn't very fond of plants though and she ignored my longing for a garden of my own, so I used to grow flowers in my own bedroom chambers where she never entered. It wasn't the best conditions for my plants, but they made me happy so…"

My voice trailed off with the realisation that I had opened up to him, talked to him about something very few people knew. It wasn't something I was ashamed of, and I didn't feel the need to keep secrets from him. Secrets always seemed so dangerous so I tried my best not to have them – unless they were things hidden from mother, of course.

"You will enjoy your new home then," Prince Victor informed me in his gruff voice. Still, there was no emotion in his voice and it was easy to think that he was angry as he said this. Or maybe he was ecstatic. It was impossible to tell. "The gardens behind the palace really flourish at this time of year. I don't have much fondness for them myself, but there are always people from court walking around to admire them."

"Well at least I have one thing to look forward to, then."

"Yes," his answer was short.

He looked away from me, his shoulders hunched forward. It was obvious the conversation was abruptly over. Had I offended him in some way? I didn't think I had said anything wrong.

This formidable monster-man I was now married to was a tough one to figure out.

* * *

Overnight, we slept in the carriage which was highly uncomfortable. There wasn't enough room to lay down, so I was expected to sleep sitting up with just a thin sheet wrapped around me for warmth. It was fair to say I didn't sleep much, but it seemed like my new husband had no such problem.

Prince Victor didn't speak to me again for the rest of the journey, so the only conversation I had was when we stopped for a few minutes at regular intervals to stretch our legs. Clarissa and Bethan came over to me each time for chatter, and we kept our distance from the Adwyndrans.

One person I couldn't seem to escape however was Prince Victor. Even during the breaks, he stayed by my side. I was surprised he didn't want to go over and talk to his family, especially when the only thing his brothers did was glare at me. I had expected him to want to complain to them about this marriage.

By the time we got to sea, I think everyone was as just as exhausted as I was. Stood on the shore, I watched as the horses and the now empty carriages were loaded onto the ship.

It was the first ship I had ever seen and it was an intimidating sight. The wooden structure was huge but beautiful, stars carved into the side and the masts held the Adwyndran crest.

My feet were unsteady as I joined the others climbing up the steps to get onto the ship. One of the royal brothers shoved his way past me, giving me a sneer as he looked back over his shoulder. What the hell was his problem? I had done nothing wrong, yet they hated me.

Well, two could play at that game. I made a mental reminder of his face, planning to get back at him for it at the first opportunity I got. I wouldn't let these men undermine me and ridicule me.

"Your Royal Highness," Clarissa sidled up to my side and curtsied. "Her majesty Karla has informed me that we are having an early night, and you are to follow Prince Victor to the bedroom you will share. Would you like Bethan and me to assist you and help you prepare for the night?"

I gulped, my eyes widening. I had been dreading having to share a bed with Prince Victor, even though I knew I had no choice. We were married now, so I would have to sleep beside him every night for the rest of our lives together. I looked around for him, spotting him stood by the set of stairs that led down into the ship. He was looking right at me.

I looked back at Clarissa's concerned face and shook my head. "Not tonight, Clarissa." I felt like I needed to do this myself, this first time with him. It was going to be a private moment and it would probably be the only thing in our relationship that was private.

I turned away from her and walked towards Prince Victor. As I neared him, he turned and headed down the stairs under the knowledge that I was following. The stairs creaked as we went down, as did the floorboards of the hallway. We went to the last room on the right and went inside.

It was a relatively small room, but I guessed that to have enough rooms for everyone on board they couldn't be any bigger. A bed took up the majority of the room, the red duvet looking thick and plush. A chest of drawers was pressed up against one of the walls, the dark wood polished and free of dust, and through another door I could see a latrine and washbasin. A small blue case sat at the foot of the bed and I recognised it to be one of my mine with my clothes inside, which didn't surprise me – cases of my things had been sent to the ship the day before the wedding so they would already be here for me.

I looked at Prince Victor, feeling awkward now in his presence. Mother had told me what was to be expected of me as the prince's wife, including the fact that our first night in a bed together we would be consummating the marriage. I'd been sheltered from the opposite sex my whole life, so I had never even had my first kiss, never mind done anything else. I was afraid that it would hurt and that I wouldn't know what to do.

"Don't worry," Prince Victor said softly. It was as if he had read my mind and worries. "I won't make you have sex with me. If that were ever to happen I would like it to be your choice. Besides, I think we both need to relax after such a tedious journey."

"Oh." I didn't quite know what to say to his kindness.

"If you'll excuse me," he bowed and left the room with no explanation as to where he was going.

I walked over to look out of the small round window against one wall. The sea rippled in waves and I felt the boat swaying as we left the shore. I was leaving my kingdom behind and moving to a new, unfamiliar home and I hated that.

I stood by the window and watched the sea for a long few minutes, not having the energy to get ready for bed just yet. When I heard Prince Victor enter the room again, I turned to face him.

"Princess Adelina." His gruff voice sounded grave. "I am afraid I have some bad news. A homing pigeon has just brought us a letter, sent by one of our lords who is staying in your kingdom a few more days."

"What is it?"

"He told us that Her Royal Highness Bernadette, your mother, has accused your father of having an affair. She has taken it as a public betrayal of the Zilathien royal family. She is holding him prisoner in the palace dungeons and has announced that he will be executed for the betrayal. The execution date is set for next week."

My heart skipped a beat. I wouldn't have blamed my father for having an affair – it wasn't exactly like he and mother were in love – but I wasn't sure if he was even capable of such a thing. He was a sweet man, how could my mother do this to him? He couldn't die; he didn't deserve that. I couldn't lose him in such a permanent way.

These thoughts paired with the movement of the rocking boat made me light-headed and I rushed to the latrine, getting there just in time to empty my stomach. As I was sick, I felt someone kneel next to me and put one hand on my back, the other holding my hair out of my face. I leaned into the touch, realising as I did so that it was Prince Victor comforting me.

I let out a sob, crying at the thought of my poor father being locked in the dark unground dungeons. What must it be like sitting down there, knowing your life was about to end? I would never forgive my mother for this.

I didn't react when Prince Victor slipped a hand beneath my knees and picked me up easily. He took me over to the bed, putting me down and sitting next to me. When he wrapped his arms around me in an embrace, I pulled myself into his lap and buried my face in his chest as my body shook with my despair.

I barely knew Prince Victor, and I didn't want to be married to him, but in that moment I was entirely grateful to have him there.

Perhaps he wasn't the monster his reputation made him out to be.


End file.
